sometimes about the places we see or where we go, sometimes about our history ....

Jun 17, 2013

Food Rationing during World War 2

Previous blog post was on CLOTHING RATIONS and this one is a little about the FOOD RATIONING during World War 2.The State Library of Victoria has an article on this subject amongst their History Research area here.

In Australia, the war did not only affect those men and women who went to fight and serve abroad. Many things also had to change for those who remained at home.

Many men left their jobs to join the armed forces leading to a
shortage of labour. New industries had to be created to supply the
troops with weapons, uniforms and ammunition . The government had to
control the buying and selling of scarce goods, to ensure that everyone
received a fair share.

Australians began to experience shortages of almost everything they
needed in daily life. At the time of World War II, most of them drank
tea, not coffee. When the Japanese captured many of the countries that
grew the tea supplied to Australia, this caused severe shortages. Enemy
action in the Pacific
also disrupted the normal supply of goods by ship to Australia.
Australian troops abroad had to be supplied with food produced in
Australia, and when thousands of American troops arrived in Australia to
fight the war in the Pacific, they also had to be fed.

To ensure that everyone received a basic amount of essential supplies
such as meat, butter, sugar and tea, the government brought in a system
of rationing. Everyone had to apply for ration books, which contained a
number of coupons. Each coupon gave the holder permission to buy a
certain amount of something, usually over a weekly period. Despite the
hardship, rationing was well received by the public because it applied
to everyone equally. Nevertheless, when the government announced in May
1942 that they would impose rationing on clothing, there was a rush to
buy as much as possible before rationing began. Petrol rationing was first enforced in Australia in
October, 1940, a little more than twelve months after the commencement
of the 1939-45 War.

No very drastic cuts in consumption were made for
some time, but, commencing in April, 1941, when the replenishment of
stocks from overseas supply sources was becoming increasingly difficult
and uncertain, progressive reductions in the monthly allowances to
civilian users were made, the basic ration being finally reduced to the
equivalent of only 800 miles of running per annum.

The period of
severest rationing lasted from late in 1941 until towards the end of
1944, non-military consumption during these three years or thereabouts
being at a rate not very much in excess of one-third of the estimated
pre-war rate of 30 million gallons per month.